A full and busy day of exploration and socializing today, starting with a hearty breakfast of pancakes, and a late sunrise over the mountains.
We left Shirley and Miriam working in the garden and set off for Hokitika which I'm told used to be a gold-mining town, and is now a popular tourist spot. First stop was the glass-blowing shop where a wondrous variety of glass figures, bowls, vases and bottles are sold, amongst other amazing creations. Carl gets a bit nervous in there with two Small Boys and Lots to Touch so we didn't tarry unnecessarily but continued our walking tour of the town.
The boys all had 'fluffies' (fluffed warm milk at 70c a pop - pretty good!) while Nick and I walked on a bit further and found a knitting museum. I honestly never knew such things existed but there were ancient machines on which socks and gloves used to be manufactured! Quite interesting actually. Back to join with the others and all walked the few paces to the beach. The beaches on the west coast apparently look quite similar to this one - rough and wild and littered with sea debris with real waves (albeit not huge) pounding the sand.
Having dusted ourselves off and collected a few samples of rock, we meandered down to the gold shop together where the boys got to hold a HUGE nugget which is satisfyingly heavy and guarded under lock and key. There are also heaps of jade shops around as the beautiful green stone is readily available in these parts.
Back home for lunch, then off to Hokitika Gorge (with Shirley still hard at it and a growing pile of evicted weeds developing). The gorge was simply wonderful - a short walk took us to the swing bridge and right over the milky turquoise water, and then further on through shady woods to another bit of a lookout and a well-populated sandfly breeding ground. Incidentally, these blue waters get their colour from rock flour (schist and greywacke rock which gets ground into a fine powder) combined with melted ice and glacial minerals. The clarity of the water changes depending on the amount of flour in it.
Back home again for some chill-time and a movie for the kids while Shirley was STILL in the garden and Miriam got busy in the kitchen in preparation for a pot-luck tea. They had extended an invitation to their church folk to come by but only a few could make it, so we met the McGarveys and Carpenter Canaan. There were 7 boys present and despite the age range from 2 to 14, they all found common ground in Hotwheels. Yay for boys!
We left Shirley and Miriam working in the garden and set off for Hokitika which I'm told used to be a gold-mining town, and is now a popular tourist spot. First stop was the glass-blowing shop where a wondrous variety of glass figures, bowls, vases and bottles are sold, amongst other amazing creations. Carl gets a bit nervous in there with two Small Boys and Lots to Touch so we didn't tarry unnecessarily but continued our walking tour of the town. 
The boys all had 'fluffies' (fluffed warm milk at 70c a pop - pretty good!) while Nick and I walked on a bit further and found a knitting museum. I honestly never knew such things existed but there were ancient machines on which socks and gloves used to be manufactured! Quite interesting actually. Back to join with the others and all walked the few paces to the beach. The beaches on the west coast apparently look quite similar to this one - rough and wild and littered with sea debris with real waves (albeit not huge) pounding the sand.
Having dusted ourselves off and collected a few samples of rock, we meandered down to the gold shop together where the boys got to hold a HUGE nugget which is satisfyingly heavy and guarded under lock and key. There are also heaps of jade shops around as the beautiful green stone is readily available in these parts.
Back home for lunch, then off to Hokitika Gorge (with Shirley still hard at it and a growing pile of evicted weeds developing). The gorge was simply wonderful - a short walk took us to the swing bridge and right over the milky turquoise water, and then further on through shady woods to another bit of a lookout and a well-populated sandfly breeding ground. Incidentally, these blue waters get their colour from rock flour (schist and greywacke rock which gets ground into a fine powder) combined with melted ice and glacial minerals. The clarity of the water changes depending on the amount of flour in it. 
Back home again for some chill-time and a movie for the kids while Shirley was STILL in the garden and Miriam got busy in the kitchen in preparation for a pot-luck tea. They had extended an invitation to their church folk to come by but only a few could make it, so we met the McGarveys and Carpenter Canaan. There were 7 boys present and despite the age range from 2 to 14, they all found common ground in Hotwheels. Yay for boys!
2 comments:
I love your photos! What a stunning weekend...i so wish i could just be stuffed in a suitcase! :)
sounds like a fun and very busy day. More great photo.
Post a Comment